ACFC takes third straight win with 6-2 Inter drubbing

A quartet of goals by striker Ben O'Meara bolstered ACFC to its third straight win Monday night as the blues destroyed Inter 6-2.

Neither shoddy officiating nor the questionable quality of the John Ferraro pitch could keep Angel City down as the squad played calm, cool and collected against an undermanned Inter, in a game where the away side could easily have notched double digit goals.

O'Meara -- voted MVP of the match -- opened the ACFC account at the 19-minute mark off a pass from Brandon Cole, and added a second nine minutes later after a strong run down the wing by a newly revitalized Ben Kull.

David Woirhaye put ACFC up by three just before the half, converting a pass from David Alarcon.

The second half was littered with questionable calls by the referee, with Inter getting numerous free kicks outside the ACFC box for dives and often non-existent contact. One such kick resulted in an Inter goal at the 67-minute mark. However, when O'Meara was hauled down on the opposite side of the pitch right in front of the ref, no such call materialized. After being yellow-carded for dissent, O'Meara got the best possible revenge, notching his third and fourth strikes at the 70 and 71 minute-marks off passes from Cole and Woirhaye.

Inter converted a second ridiculous free kick outside the box at 78 minutes (a call which saw two more ACFC yellow cards for dissent). But Woirhaye capped the win minutes later, capitalizing on a counterattack by Kull and Cole.

The game saw a strong back line and solid midfield back-checking restricting Inter to seven shots over the 90 minutes.

ACFC's record now sits at 3 wins and a loss, with a +10 GD. The squad play Hollywood United next Monday at John Ferraro with an 7 PM kickoff.


GAME STATS

Inter (2) vs ACFC (6)

Goals:
ACFC: Ben O'Meara (19:00, 28:00, 70:00, 71:00),
David Woirhaye (38:00, 78:00)

Inter: (67:00, 78:00)

Assists:
Brandon Cole (3), Ben Kull (2), David Alarcon, David Woirhaye

Shots:
Inter (7) vs ACFC (14)

Corner Kicks:
Inter (2) vs ACFC (6)

Yellow Cards:
Inter (0) vs ACFC (3)

MVP: Ben O'Meara

ACFC 7s Results: July 25

LA Soccer Club (7) vs AC Allstars (5)
Goals: Tiit Tikenberg (2), Sergei Baranov, Marius Sandvik,
Sevan Hanimayan

Valhalla (2) vs Angel City FC (10)
Goals: David Woirhaye (3), Craig Nichols (2), Ben Kull, Sevan Hanimayan,
Marius Sandvik, Tiit Tikenberg, Ari Yaghmaie

The Wailers (5) vs ACFC (8)
Goals: Jonny Ibanez (2), Santi Gomez-Ribeiro, Craig Nichols,
Tiit Tikenberg (2), Ricardo Ledoux, Sevan Hanimayan

______________________________________

Top Goal Scorers | Summer 7s

15 Tiit Tikenberg
13 Craig Nichols
9 David Woirhaye
8 Marius Sandvik
5 Jonny Ibanez
4 Russ Muratov
4 Volkert Besseling
4 Matt Onheiber
3 Sevan Hanimayan
3 Michael Sharp
3 Jaime Chavez
3 Mike Lewis
3 David Alarcon
2 Ian Worrel
2 Miguel Lopez
2 Santiago Gomez-Ribeiro
2 Ricardo Ledoux
1 Michael Gemballa
1 Ivan O'Neil
1 Brad Helmink
1 Sergei Baranov
1 Ben Kull
1 Ari Yaghmaie
1 Brandon Cole
1 Kelechi Okoro

ACFC notch convincing 6-1 Nomads win

An overall calm, strong passing, good finishing and a solid back line handed ACFC its second victory of the B Div Summer season.

From the opening whistle, Angel City took the game to the Nomads, pushing forward for the opening goal and cutting off counterattacking opportunities well up field. Brandon Cole opened the ACFC account at the five-minute mark off a shot just outside the box. Cole added to the tally with a pass to David Woirhaye at 13 minutes, allowing DW to notch his second goal of the season.

Maintaining that forward pressure both on and off the ball created numerous chances, and seven minutes later a Blake Nickle shot deflected off a Nomads defender for goal no. 3.

The Nomads only chance of the half came from a poor pass in the 18-yard box which keeper Dave Styles recovered from with a flashy save, punching ball over the crossbar.

The second half also saw Angel City dominate on the field and featured a brace from striker Russ Muratov, who was eager to get the scoring monkey off his back. The first -- at the 60-minute mark -- was a first-time kick in the box off a great cross from Ben O'Meara.

The Nomads lone goal came at the 81-minute mark ... a looping cross into the net. But Mutatov responded quickly with his second goal minutes later, with a hard shot which again defected off a Nomad defender and into the net. David Alarcon iced the win with a shot just before the final whistle to end the game 6-1. Player-manager Ben Kull was awarded MVP of the match for his tenacity and endurance as part of a strong midfield presence which both created plays and shut down Nomad opportunities.

ACFC's record now sits at 2 wins and a loss, with a +6 GD. The squad play Inter next Monday at John Ferraro with an 8:45 PM kickoff.


GAME STATS

Nomads FC (1) vs ACFC (6)

Goals:
ACFC: Brandon Cole (5:00), David Woirhaye (13:00), Blake Nickle (20:00),
Russ Murtov (60:00, 83:00), David Alarcon (90:00)
Nomads FC: (81:00)

Assists:
Brandon Cole, Ben O'Meara, Ben Kull

Corner Kicks:
Nomads FC (2) vs ACFC (6)

Yellow Cards:
Nomads FC (1) vs ACFC (1)

MVP: Ben "Tornado" Kull

ACFC 7s Results: July 18

Angel City's three 7s squads posted and mixed bag of results Saturday taking a loss, a win and a tie.

The AC Allstars -- contesting the toughest division of the three -- dropped a disappointing third straight loss to fall to 1 and 3. The Setanta division now features two teams with 4-0 records and four with 1-3 records, leaving the Allstars still tied for second. This week's four goals were notched by Ian Worrel, Tiit Tikenberg, Michael Gemballa and Miguel Lopez, but the squad's overall performance was a little uninspired, lacking both finishing and an edge on the ball.

Angel City FC hit the field next against a more amenable Mc Dermott FC side, notching six unanswered goals to up their record to three wins and a loss. Matt Onheiber and Volkert each recorded a brace with Ricardo Ledoux and Titt Tikenberg adding singles for the win. Sergei Baranov stepped between the posts to record the shutout.

ACFC wrapped up the games with a hard fought 5-5 tie against the Slutty Buffalos 2. In what can only be described as a wide open scoring-fest, ACFC started strong with an early goal by David Woirhaye after a strong run into the box by Ari Yaghmaie. The Buffalos then tied the game, but an Ivan O'Neil strike before the half left the squad up by one at the break.

The second half saw a flurry of goals, with the Buffalos taking the lead at one point 4-2. Striker Craig Nichols -- in an effort reminiscent of Alan Shearer in his prime, took advantage of a tetchy Buffalo back two on no less than three occasions to elevate to squad to a 5-5 tie. ACFC remain undefeated with a record of two wins and two ties.

All three squads return to action July 25.

______________________________________

BH Allstars (9) vs AC Allstars (4)
Goals: Ian Worrel, Tiit Tikenberg, Michael Gemballa, Miguel Lopez

Mc Dermott (0) vs Angel City FC (6)
Goals: Matt Onheiber (2), Volkert Besseling (2), Ricardo Ledoux,
Tiit Tikenberg

Slutty Buffalos 2 (5) vs ACFC (5)
Goals: Craig Nichols (3), David Woirhaye, Ivan O'Neil
______________________________________

Top Goal Scorers | Summer 7s

10 Tiit Tikenberg
10 Craig Nichols
6 Marius Sandvik
6 David Woirhaye
4 Russ Muratov
4 Volkert Besseling
4 Matt Onheiber
3 Michael Sharp
3 Jaime Chavez
3 Mike Lewis
3 Jonny Ibanez
3 David Alarcon
2 Ian Worrel
2 Miguel Lopez
1 Brandon Cole
1 Kelechi Okoro
1 Santiago Gomez-Ribeiro
1 Michael Gemballa
1 Ricardo Ledoux
1 Ivan O'Neil
1 Brad Helmink

ACFC TAKE 3-0 ATLETICO ESPANOL FC WIN

Angel City FC were back to winning form last night at Griffith Park taking a strong 3-0 win against Atletico Espanol FC on the back of a solid mid-field and defense and some key stops by keeper Dave Styles (yes Styles ... you're in the lede).

Holding the home team to five shots, ACFC showed the spark that won them the Div C championship last season, shutting down a quick Atletico attack before it could get started.

The game saw the return of scoring sensation Ben O'Meara -- who tore through the Atletico defence -- and featured a much stronger offense than the squad's opening game efforts last week. Aussie import Sevan Hanimyan opened the scoring at the 10-minute mark finishing off an in-the box run from Matt Onheiber.

While, at the other end, Dave Styles kept his shutout alive with an amazing one-handed save on a near breakaway just before the end of half.

Manager Ben Kull also showed some of his Tornado tenacity in the game with some key tackles in mid-field (one would never know he was injured for the better part of last season).

Expecting Atletico to come out strong in the second half for the tying goal, ACFC quickly turned the tables with a quick counterattack at the 49-minute mark, with Ben O'Meara converting a David Woirhaye pass to tweak the twine.

And holding mid-fielder Matt Onheiber capped the win at the 70-minute mark off a pass from Russ Muratov to quash any last hopes Atletico might have had for a comeback.

The squad returns to the Griffith Park turf field July 20 against Nomads FC with a 7 PM kickoff. The LA Municipal league has yet to update the tables with results from week one, but those listings will be posted on the ACFC fixtures page as soon as they are available. ACFC's record sits at a win and a loss with a +1 Goal Differential.

GAME STATS (as provided by Bryan Moore)

Atletico Espanol FC (0) vs ACFC (3)

Goals:
ACFC: Sevan Hanimyan (10:00), Ben "Where'd He Go" O'Meara (49:00),
Matt "The Enforcer" Onheiber (70:00)
Atletico Espanol FC : 0

Shots:
Atletico Espanol FC (5) vs ACFC (13)

Corner Kicks:
Atletico Espanol FC (0) vs ACFC (6)

Yellow Cards:
Atletico Espanol FC (0) vs ACFC (1)

Shutout: Dave Styles
MVP: Goth

ACFC 7s Results: July 11

Dogtown FC (9) vs AC Allstars (4)
Goals: Ian Worrel, David Woirhaye, Michael Sharp (2)

Team Esquire (4) vs Angel City FC (3)
Goals: Jonny Ibanez, Santi Gomez-Ribeiro, Tiit Tikenberg

Swamp Donkeys (3) vs ACFC (3)
Goals: David Alarcon, Craig Nichols, Miguel Lopez

All three teams return to play July 18.

Top Goal Scorers | Summer 7s

8 Tiit Tikenberg
6 Marius Sandvik
7 Craig Nichols
5 David Woirhaye
4 Russ Muratov
3 Michael Sharp
3 Jaime Chavez
3 Mike Lewis
3 Jonny Ibanez
3 David Alarcon
2 Volkert Besseling
2 Matt Onheiber
1 Brad Helmink
1 Ian Worrel
1 Brandon Cole
1 Kelechi Okoro
1 Santiago Gomez-Ribeiro
1 Miguel Lopez

ACFC drops season opener 3-1 in tight match

Missed chances and early season jitters got to Angel City FC in their summer opener against Armenia Deportivo Monday night at John Ferraro.

Sporting a new light blue and white adidas kit, the squad got off to a slow start offensively in the first half, but weathered the storm for the first 15 minutes before generating some counterattacking opportunities on goal. However it was Deportivo who struck first at the 28-minute mark off a free kick outside the box which saw the ball go over the wall and into the right hand corner of the net, past keeper Dave Styles.

However, ACFC stuck back four minutes later off a free kick from the far right corner of the field. Winger David Woirhayne notched the team's first Div B goal with a looping cross which fooled the Deportivo goalie. The game stayed tied 1-1 at the half despite chances at both ends of the pitch.

The second half also opened with chances for both squads, but ACFC's finish was a little rusty. Armenia notched their second goal at the 63-minute mark with a shot from outside the box which caught keeper Styles off guard. And Deportivo iced the win with a third strike between Styles and the near post at the 79-minute mark.

ACFC kept up the pressure to catch up in the goals department, but couldn't convert their chances.

Following the match Coach Billy Alarcon said he knew what elements the team needed to work on and that issues on the field would be resolved for the squad's second match next week against Atletico Espanol FC at Griffith Park (8:45 PM kickoff).

Also on a positive note, Monday's match saw the return of playing manager Ben Kull to action after a season of injury recovery. ACFC features several new faces this season including 7s regulars Michael Sharp and Blake Nickle.

GAME STATS (as provided by Bryan Moore)

Armenia Deportivo (3) vs ACFC (1)

Goals:
ACFC: David Woirhaye (32:00)
Armenia Deportivo: (28:00, 63:00, 79:00)

Shots:
Armenia Deportivo (18) vs ACFC (11)

Corner Kicks:
Armenia Deportivo (1) vs ACFC (4)

Yellow Cards:
Armenia Deportivo (0) vs ACFC (2)

From the LA Municipal Soccer League

NOTE: ACFC 11s players should always try to be at games at least 30 minutes prior to kickoff for warm-up and official sign-in.

From the league:

DATE: March 17, 2009
TO: 2009 WINTER/SPRING SOCCER LEAGUE MANAGERS/CAPTAINS
FROM: CUONG CHAU, Senior Recreation Director II
SUBJECT: GAME TIME
Managers/coaches please have your players there at least 10 minutes prior to the start time. This way they can sign in, turn in their player ID card, and be ready to play when the official blows the whistle. The official will start the game with a minimum of seven (7) players (Section VIII C). At the ten (10) minute grace period if the team is unable to have the minimum players it will be a forfeit at that point. Then the league office will deduct $100.00 from your bond to cover for the official’s fee. Please check with the center referee as to when the 10 minute grace period starts. Beginning Monday March 23, 2009, officials will enforce the forfeit time.